Green Room

Mom and dad, Granny and Pap came to stay with me for Christmas, but they didn't come until lunchtime on the 24th. So I had some time to kill...
I painted this room at night after work on the 22nd and 23rd. It still needs some art for the walls and better furniture, but the color is growing on me. What do you think? Too Grinchy?

M.M.M

Missin My Man

How could you not miss that sweet face and beautiful eyes. Sigh.

Adventures in Sewing

So I'm working on being a domesticated wife and so far it's going pretty well. I haven't set anything on fire yet. Last year, I made a stocking for Jake that had deer and camo. It's a little wompy jomp, but it works. This year I decided to make my own Christmas Tree Skirt. Now, that is a big job, let me tell you. For someone who has limited sewing experience, it was a bumpy ride. My grandma showed me a few things about the old Singer sewing machine that I have and I'm sooooo thankful for that. I would have had no clue how to use it. It ran like a champ though!

I found a vendor on Etsy.com called the Red Marionette and I love her creations. She charges high dollar for them and I now know why. She makes these cute felt animals that I just fell in love with. I didn't want to pay $9.50 for a felt owl, so I tried making one myself. It turned out so cute and I gained confidence. I picked some winter-like animals and forged on with my Christmas Tree Skirt project. Below is the final product.


Cast of characters: Flash, Waddles, Hootie and Chilly

Kallie's blog

Meow.
(She made me write that)

Pinstripe

Jacob and I have seen our friend (and by friend, I mean arch nemesis) Pinstripe many times in our yard. Yesterday, I found one if Pinstripe's babies, which was 1.5 feet long and very skinny, in our front flowerbed under a bush. Of course Jacob, being the wonderful husband that he is, offered to kill it. The brave soul picked up a rock and threw it at the snake's body in short range. Surprisingly, since the snake was so thin, he hit it and it actually died! I sang his praises and asked him to get rid of it. Later I walked outside and his idea of getting rid of it was putting it in the middle of the walkway. That would just not do since 2 of my girlfriends were coming over in an hour. He reluctantly moved it into the yard, although not sure what he planned to do with it in the coming days. Not to worry, the body/evidence had disappeared overnight...

Close call

Last night I was driving home on highway 71 after dark (~6:30 with Daylight savings time) going 70mph. This is a normal occurrence since I travel a lot. The strangest things I have seen in the middle of the road during my travels up to this point in my life are a wheelbarrow and a wild pig. The wheelbarrow was really scary since we had to swerve and almost hit other cars going 70mph on a busy highway in San Antonio. The wild pig ran across the road on my drive to College Station from Austin and I caught a glimpse of its hoof and tail. Yesterday I saw the craziest thing I've ever seen and hope to ever see walking across a busy highway. A full size horse. It did not have a saddle or a rider. It was just taking a stroll across Hwy 71 in the dark. Luckily I saw it before I was upon it and it was to my left walking to the right. I was able to miss it and tap my brakes to warn the folks behind me. I hope my warning helped. The car behind me had to swerve off the road to miss the horse and it landed in a grassy median/ditch. One of its headlights went out and then it put on its flashers. I assumed they were OK since they put their flashers on and other cars that slammed on their brakes were near them. A horse through the windshield is not something anyone is prepared for. Thank you Lord for keeping us all safe. From my brief look at the horse, this is what I think it resembled (without the saddle).

More Decor

Last night I added some new decor to my Jill Cave. I think I got this idea from etsy.com, which is a website that I am now in love with. It is a place where regular Janes from all over the world can sell their wares. I've never bought anything from this site, but I've stolen many ideas from it. Hee hee.

The fabric is from the store in Dallas I was telling you about yesterday. It's called City Craft and it's at Lovers and Inwood. My fav is the one on the far right. It has different little owls on it. I'm in an owl phase, what can I say?

Kallie really likes the new floor protector under the rolly chair. She is also a big fan of the Jill Cave.

Finally a Jill Cave update!

I know that you have been totally bored, twiddling your thumbs, anxiously awaiting a new blog post to A Bean's Life. I deeply apologize for keeping you in suspense. I know you live to read my blog. ;)


Well here are some pictures of the bookshelf Jacob and I put together and modified for the Jill Cave. The shelf is from Ikea, solid wood surprisingly. I found the awesome fabric that lines the inside at a cute fabric shop in Dallas. I totally wish there was a shop like that in Houston. Maybe there is...anyone know of one? The fabric has deer camouflaged in it, if you can't tell, which is just perfect but not intended. We stretched it around the backing and then just nailed the back on. I am very pleased with the result. :)

My next project in the Jill Cave has yet to be completed. Rest assured that when it is, pictures will be posted.

Slow down

OK so I'm really bad at the whole blogging thing. Maybe I'll be better now that things have calmed down. The wedding and honeymoon

are over. Jacob is out on a rig of the coast of Asia. Time to slow down.

I started painting my Jill cave last night. What's a Jill cave you ask? Well, Jacob has his man cave, so naturally I get a Jill cave. It's Katie's old room and it's at the front of the house with lots of sunlight and a great view. I'm painting it this light aqua color, which I love so far. This room is going to be my place of relaxation and piddling. Katie's big comfy chair will be in the room along with my desk and bookshelf. One day there may even be a sewing machine in there. Who knows! The possibilities are endless! This is my first painting experience and I was a little worried since I had no idea what I was doing, but it's going pretty well. I don't think there's paint on the carpet yet. Good sign. This is the room before I moved in.

Wedding week is here!

It really is! Only 4 days until Jacob and I become husband and wife! We are so excited and ready to get this show on the road. We had such a nice weekend in Austin getting ready for the wedding. Actually, there wasn't much wedding activity. We took Old School out on Lake Austin and then went skiing at Frameswitch Monday. I could not have picked a more fun way to spend my last weekend before the wedding. Here's some pics! Jacob and I skiing together

Dad back on the lake for the first time since his accident.

Jacob slalomed for the first time!

I brushed off my trick skiing skills with a reverse.

Seriously guys?

When it rains it pours. Isn't that how the saying goes? Well, it's true. It seems like the men in my family and Jacob's family are determined to hurt themselves before the wedding. Here are a few things that have been happening around here.

1. The father of the bride breaks his neck waterskiing while daughter is vacationing in China.

2. The great-grandfather of the groom starts a house fire by putting a bowl of sugar in the microwave to dry it out. I know what you're thinking, why'd he do that? The answer: because he's Pappy.

2a. The great-grandfather of the groom is informed that he has blisters/burns on his head from the fire. He is hospitalized that day.

3. The grandfather of the bride begins to experience extreme pain in his back while at a wedding. He lands in the ER that night. The back pain turns into knee pain. He can no longer straighten his legs. They begin to become swollen since he can not lay down. He has been sitting in a chair all day and night for weeks.

4. The father of the groom/best man decides he is superman and can roll hay in the Texas heat all day. He is admitted to the hospital 2 days later with pneumonia.

5. The groom is away from home for 7 weeks. Well, he's not hurt, but it's sad.

Look at the hottie

My Cub in action!

Delicious and Nutritious!

Angel Food cake with sugared strawberries. Delish! I made this cake out of an HEB box mix and it turned out perfectly!

Happy birthday Katie!

Aww how sweet.

Missin my honey

Well I am missing Jacob, but he'll be back before I know it. This is his ride out to the rig off the coast of Namibia, Africa. He's now sailing around the coastline of Brazil with a destination of Trinidad. They'll make a short stop there and then head to Curacao. Hopefully he'll get some play time in both of those beautiful destinations.

I was a busy lady last Saturday! I think I sweat enough to fill two wheelbarrows. OK that makes me sound gross, but it was so HOT! First thing Saturday morning, I mowed the lawn. Next, I began digging a hole to plant this beautiful avacado tree that Vishal and Poonam gave me. It's doing so well. :)

Next, I dug up two shrubs in the front yard that I wanted to move. Here's one of them that I moved to the backyard to hide the electrical box. Digging this hole was a monster. My poor little sharp shooter and shovel almost bit the dust. This was the last thing I did on Saturday and I almost passed out from heat exhaustion multiple times. There were many water and Gatorade breaks that day.

No Peeking!!!

Jacob: Do not look at this.

Others: Please read on.

I had bridal pictures taken and they be seen on I Heart Photography's website. Go to the Proofing tab and the password is jill. I know I need more makeup, but oh well. What's done is done. There are a few good ones.

Great weekend :)

I got to see my world traveler friend Lisa (lived in China for the past 2 years) and my old college roomie Kelley this weekend! Lisa returned from China a few weeks ago and is now living in Austin with her bro and his family. We got to go to church together and have lunch with my family, which was delish. Roast, potatoes and Sister Schubert's rolls. MMMMMMMMMMmmmmmmmmmm.

It was so great to see Kelley too! We went to see Inception Saturday night, which was actually very good! I was apprehensive about a Leo Dicaprio movie, but I was pleasantly surprised. It was mostly unbelievable, but it definitely kept my attention. I'd recommend it to anyone.

The weirdest things excite me these days. I just ordered 200 sandalwood fans for my wedding guests and I can't wait to see them when they come in! It's going to be plenty hot in September, so I hope these help to cool people off.

Steer Clear

Of the Blue Fish House II in Town Center. The service was incredibly bad. The male waiter rolled his eyes at us multiple times and treated us like we were always wrong! Laci ordered grilled chicken with veggies and mashed potatoes and it was refrigerator temperature! They didn't even bother to warm it up when they pulled it out of the fridge it had been sitting in pre-cooked. The sushi was good, but the service made our experience most un-enjoyable. Thumbs down!

Blue Fish Sushi

I'm going to the Blue Fish House in Sugar Land for sushi tonight with the gals from my bible study. It's been so long since I've had sushi and man, am I craving it! I've never been there before so I'll let you know tomorrow how it was.

The only fish I had in China was a fish ball in hot pot. I was not a fan. Here's one of my favorite dishes from China. I forget what it's called, but it's pork strips marinated in some yummy sauce and tortilla.

Showered with love

The past 2 weekends have been spent with wonderful friends and family. Katie and Robin threw me a bridal shower 2 weekends ago for my pals in Houston and it was a hoot! I loved being with friends, eating breakfast for dinner and giggling a lot!

This is a tree of wisdom on which friends wrote down advice for me for marriage.


Awesome cake made by Katie's co-worker that looked like my shower invitation!


Cooler from Lynette that Jacob and I have used heavily already for playing tennis and doing yardwork.


The favor for the guests was awesome apple butter made by Katie's mom! It is the best spread for toast. No lie.

First Dance

This is what Jacob and my first wedding dance will be to...She's Like Texas by the Josh Abbott Band

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yapf2QvFHfw

Chinese Dancing Noods

That is a noodle that he's dancing with. After he was finished, it went into someone's hot pot. Awesome.

Good Times

Along with the pains, there are many joys of homeownership. One of them being, gardening. I planted daisies and some kind of caladiums this weekend. It was so much fun! I hope they live through the summer. Check em out!

Bin Qi Lin

It's 12:26am Thursday and I am headed to the airport in 2 hours to catch my plane to Newark and then China! My dear friend Lisa (on right) is the reason for my visit. I'm very excited to hug her neck for 4 minutes!
Bin Qi Lin = ice cream in Chinese

Mondays

Today is Monday. The first day of the week. Worked a full day, ran errands after work, mowed the yard, ate dinner and now I am on a conference call and have been for an hour and a half. I hate Mondays.

Thursday is the day I leave for China to visit Lisa! I'm so excited! Please pray for my safety and that my legs wouldn't hurt during the long plane ride. I'll try to get up and walk around often. The second I get off of this call, I'm going to pack!

This is me, mom and Granny at the anniversary party. I love my family so much. What awesome role models I have!

Buzzzzzz

That's right. Jacob got a buzz. I love it.
Kallie got one too. She's my little squirrel.

Happy 24th Jacob!

We had Jake's 24th birthday party at the new house a few weekends ago. It was so fun to have everyone over to celebrate.

Jake didn't remember the last time he blew out candles so I made him do it.


Last night, we lost our beloved GG. We know that God is pleased with her life and has welcomed her to eternal life with Him. We'll miss you GG, but we know you're having lots of fun up there!

2, 4, and 8 legged friends

Michellie came to visit last weekend and we had such a good time! We tried on dresses and bought the dresses you see here, but in my color, Apple. The one I'm wearing is for Lisa.


We then went to see The Last Song, which was a tear-jerker. Let me just say, I'm glad I wasn't wearing mascara.

We had lunch at Another Time Soda Fountain in Richmond, which had awesome shakes! I can't say much for the food, but the shakes were delish.

After lunch, we went home and took a nap. Really, we did and it was great. Then we played tennis in my neighborhood, which was great too. Dinner was a Michelle and Jill culinary specialty of shrimp alfredo. It was marvelous.

Sunday we went to The Bridge and heard an awesome sermon from Kenny about prophesy and what's going on in our world now. Earthquakes, famine...sound familiar? Have you heard about any earthquakes recently? Let me think...yes. Our time here is so short so it really reminded me to make the most of it and love as big as possible!

Michellie went back to Austin after lunch and then I found this guy in my kitchen. Yep.

The Helber's came over later to pick up their dog, Sugar, who I was babysitting for the weekend. I was sad to have her leave, but she was glad to see her parents. I may be a little bit of a dog person after all...

Meet Paxton Ace

Welcome Paxton! This is the newest member of Jacob's extended family. I guess he's considered Jacob's 2nd cousin. He's really cute. Jake was holding him and Pax spit up a little and Jake said "I'm done." and handed him back to me.
Jacob is in Singapore for the remainder of April. He returns to Houston on May 6 at 5:43am, which is funny because I leave for China on May 6 at 6am. We will be in the same airport, but I'll board the plane by the time he lands. Maybe his flight will come in early and mine will be delayed. I can hope, right?

He said everyone speaks English and there are a lot of white and Indian people there. There's a Burger King across from his apartment so I think he'll be fine.

Love blooms in Richmond

Angelo did a phenomenal job on our engagement pictures! I like this one a lot.


The field to our right was covered with vibrant yellow flowers. It was such an awesome sight. Too bad there was barbed wire and chicken wire between us and the field.


Jacob just wanted to hold me and show you how strong he is ;)


I love this in the indian paintbrushes. There was just a little strip of flowers on the side of the road that made for a beautiful backdrop.


The shed in the background was ideal. I love this picture.


This is just sweet. I don't care who you are.


This is my favorite picture of Jacob, ever. His best smile caught on camera!

Here's the link to the rest of the pics. Enjoy!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ange062/sets/72157623621114023